Stienstra again top outdoor writer

EXAMINER STAFF REPORT

Published 4:00 am, Sunday, June 29, 1997

GRENELEFE, Fla. - Examiner outdoors writer Tom Stienstra has been awarded national Outdoor Writer of the Year, newspaper division, by the Outdoor Writers Association of America at the organization's annual conference.

It is Stienstra's second award since the association started it four years ago.

The winning story, "Is it fair to hunt bears with radio collar dogs?" , was picked from 1,360 entries across the country. It was published Aug. 19 as the second of a two-part series on bears and their encounters with people.

"The story had a compelling and vivid voice, yet still managed to present both sides of the issue fairly, a difficult job with such an explosive issue," said the association's lead judge.

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"It is the best of the best, as awarded by his peers," said Jim Rainey, the association's executive director.

Examiner Executive Editor Phil Bronstein praised Stienstra as a great talent. "We're not surprised that Tom's colleagues have ranked him the best of the best, something that our readers have known for some time," Bronstein said.

To be considered a finalist for the award, Stienstra won first places in three Outdoor Writers Association of America writing categories. In addition to first place in ethics writing for the story examining bear hunting, he won first place for best boating story for the column "A boatload of memories in old green canoe," and first place for best freshwater fishing story "A father-son Canadian big fish story."

In all, the awards brought $2,500 in prize money.

Earlier this month, Stienstra won California Outdoor Writer of the Year for a story about how a game warden brought down the biggest wildlife poaching ring in state history.&lt;